


Nebula Bruises

by flourishandblotts



Category: Game Grumps, Good Game (TV 2017)
Genre: Abuse, Bruises, Physical Abuse, Protectiveness, Sad, but ryland is protective af and cares a lot about alex's wellbeing, care, i have forgotten how to tag
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-20
Updated: 2019-06-08
Packaged: 2020-03-08 16:28:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18898378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flourishandblotts/pseuds/flourishandblotts
Summary: Alex Taylor was the fucking happy-go-luckiest guy that Ryland had ever met in his damn life. But since being with Jamie, something had changed and Ryland was growing more worried than everIn which Ryland discovers Alex' new boyfriend is abusive.





	1. Prologue

Alex Taylor was the fucking happy-go-luckiest guy that Ryland had ever met in his damn life.

He didn’t give a shit about what other people thought of him - not out of narcissism, but because he was truly comfortable in his own skin, an attribute which Ryland both admired and envied. His optimism was infectious and he had an uncanny knack for making people feel good about themselves whether they wanted to or not.

The excitement was positively radiating from Alex as he lounged next to Ryland on the couch. Half-wrecked, drink in hand, he was babbling about everything he had planned for E-Sports People over the upcoming weeks - strategies, training, team bonding exercises - while Ryland listened apathetically, attention mostly focused on the game in front of him.

“It’s gonna be so _good_ , man, I can feel it!” Alex grinned.

Ryland let out a hum of agreement. He glanced over at the bottle in Alex’s hand, amazed and slightly disgusted at how much the man had drunk in such a short space of time, when something grabbed his eye: circling Alex’s left wrist was a pattern of circular bruises like fingerprints. He took one hand off the controller and nudged Alex’s wrist with his knuckles.

“You have a good time with Jamie last night?” Ryland smirked, raising an eyebrow. He watched as Alex visibly stiffened, something akin to shock flashing briefly over his angular features before his cheeks reddened and he gave a shy half-grin.

“I - I, uh, yeah. Sorry,” he spluttered. Ryland chuckled softly and rolled his eyes before returning to the game.

“Nothing to be sorry for. As long as you’re having fun and staying safe ‘n shit.”

Through his peripheral vision, Ryland watched as Alex smiled sheepishly in response before staring intently at his beer, swilling the liquid around the brown glass bottle.

“We are,” he answered quietly. Ryland nodded in approval.

“Good. Now, put that beer down and grab another fucking controller.”


	2. Baseball Tees and Button-Ups

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Despite Alex's best efforts, Ryland had noticed more bruising on his body: violet shadows blooming across his narrow hips, angry red nips hidden in the copse of tangled hair. Each new contusion gave Ryland further insight into Alex and Jamie's seemingly wild sex life._
> 
> Part II: Alex hides his pain and is overwhelmingly smiley and giddy to overcompensate; Ryland quietly cares about Alex but prefers to give him space.

Ryland had initially pushed the image of Alex’s bruises to the back of his mind, deciding whatever Alex and Jamie got up to in their spare time was none of his business.

However, it hadn’t been as easy to ignore the change in Alex’s behaviour. He had gradually swapped his usual polo shirts for equally garish long-sleeved baseball tees and tacky button-ups and was often tugging his hair around his neck to frame his face. Ryland had questioned him about it but was met with hasty dismissal and the claim that he was feeling a chill or coming down with an illness; but by the way Alex constantly worried at the hem of his sleeves, pulling them down over his hands, Ryland could tell he was trying to hide the marks on his forearms.

He didn’t mind. This was the first serious relationship Alex had been in since he and Ryland had known each other - Ryland figured he was either feeling embarrassed or being purposely secretive, wanting to keep Jamie all to himself while he relished in the sparkling honeymoon phase.

Despite all of Alex’s best efforts, Ryland had caught brief glimpses of additional bruising. Violet shadows bloomed across Alex’s narrow hips and blinked in the light whenever he stretched his arms above his head; angry red nips on his neck were hidden in his copse of tangled hair. Each new contusion gave Ryland further insight into Alex and Jamie’s seemingly wild sex life. Still, Alex promised they were being safe, and this had satisfied Ryland’s initial concern.

Like most days, Ryland had spent the evening alone. Alex was with his boyfriend again and had left Ryland to relish in the notable quietness of the living room. He liked living with Alex, but sometimes his habits - the smoking and drinking - could be a little...much. And god knows that his reckless optimism could be fucking exhausting. It was easier for Ryland to focus without his roommate’s hyperactive energy. He'd managed to clear his email inbox, pay his phone bill and even cook dinner before he’d ended up slumped on the couch in front of the TV. 

Nondescript colours and shapes passed in front of Ryland’s glazed eyes. That was the one thing he did miss about Alex’s presence in the evening - his constant chatter and rambling kept Ryland from overthinking. Not that he would admit it. As he lay motionless, mouth half-agape and face smooshed into a cushion, Ryland could feel the overbearing silence beyond the fuzz of the television and the silence brought all of his anxieties and worries creeping back into his mind like a shitty parade of all the stupidest things he’d ever done. There were tournaments looming, big ones, and every mistimed press of a button or misaligned formation would cost them dearly. He could hear the jeers from the crowd in his brain, could sense pairs of eyes boring into the back of his skull, could feel a hard ball of dread forming in the pit of his stomach.

The metallic clink of keys in the front door roused Ryland from his reverie. He rubbed a hand across his eyes groggily and brought his phone in front of his face, squinting at the screen. 8PM and a missed text from Ash. Ryland groaned. He’d been staring at the muted TV in the dark for almost three fucking hours and he hadn’t even realised. He shifted his body up so he could see over the back of the couch as the door quietly clicked shut. Alex padded into the kitchen, flicking on the light before dropping his bag onto the tiled floor. He took a few steps forward and gripped the edge of the countertop. Alex’s tall frame seemed to shrink, shoulders slumping, and his head dropped towards the floor as he let out a long breath. Ryland surveyed him for a few moments before clearing his throat.

“Shit!” Alex cursed, leaping away from the counter and whipping his head around to face Ryland, curls flying wildly. “Wha- Ryland?”

“Yeah, yeah. Sorry,” Ryland apologised blearily, dragging his legs over the side of the couch and pulling himself into a sitting position. Grabbing the remote, he switched off the TV with a yawn and stared at Alex.

“You alright? I thought you were staying at Jamie’s tonight.”

“I’m fine!” Alex spluttered, startled, quickly rearranging his features into a smile. “ I- well, he, uh. He has to work early in the morning. You know I would have stayed if I could.”

Ryland replied with a tired half-smile, returning his attention to his phone. He swiped open the message from Ash while Alex slunk towards the fridge.

_**ryland. me + noone + bar = this fucking sucks. me + you + bar = a good time. 7:45 usual place don’t be a fucking loser.** _

“Hey Lex, hold it,” Ryland called, ceasing the tell-tale clink of beer bottles. Alex shuffled into view with a quizzical look on his face.

“Ash wants us to meet her at the bar.”

Alex looked down at his hands briefly, thumbing at a frayed edge of his shirt. He glanced at Ryland from underneath his dark lashes.

“Do, uh - do you want to, Ry? You seem tired.” 

Ryland hauled himself to his feet, his joints popping like bubble wrap by way of thanks for finally being allowed movement. There was a still a hum circling in the back of his mind and he welcomed the idea of distraction.

“Well, I haven’t exactly been anything important.” He waved his phone towards Alex and arched an eyebrow. “So?”

Alex blinked, wide-eyed, before straightening up and nodding emphatically. 

“I’ll get changed!” he sang, turning and skipping towards his bedroom. Ryland frowned. He might have been imagining it, but Alex definitely seemed...different. Faded; somehow not his usual bright self, but rather overly-chirpy and alert.

 _Maybe he was just disappointed he wasn’t able to take Jamie to Seventh Heaven all night long_ , Ryland thought. He chuckled to himself and tapped out a response to Ash: _**Sorry, missed your text, Alex is coming too. See you in 20.**_

Alex returned no less than two minutes later, sporting a bright yellow blazer over a light salmon shirt. His pewter-cast necklace dangled over the sliver of his exposed chest and his hair was fluffed around the edges from tugging his t-shirt off over his head. Noticing Ryland’s stare, he beamed before lifting a leg to his chest seductively. 

“What do you think? You like what you see?” he teased, wiggling his eyebrows. Ryland opened his mouth, lost for words.

“You look...like Alex.” he sighed eventually. When a brief look of hurt flashed across Alex’s face, he elaborated “I - you look great, man.”

The older man’s eyes softened at the compliment and Alex giggled, practically dancing towards the door. A soft buzz alerted Ryland to his phone and he skimmed his eyes across the new text from Ash.

_**Y.E.S.!!! sam’s here this is going to be gr8 see you soon assholes <3 pleas don’t let alex wear anything stupid i swear to shit ill punch him in the balls, lets actually look COOL for once** _

Alex was already waiting outside the van, idly fiddling with a button on his shirt as he hopped from one foot to another. Ryland deftly replied to Ash with one hand and locked the apartment door with the other, slipping his phone into the pocket of his jeans as he trudged towards Alex.

_**Can't promise anything** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this!!! was!!! so!!! difficult!!! to!!! write!!!
> 
> this ended up being a dumb filler chapter, it's mainly kind of context clues i guess? also i'm having a real hard time finding the dialogue balance between Alex and Ryland, especially the switch between Lex hurting inside but REALLY trying hard not to let it show because there still needs to be enough subtleties that Ryland ignores. idek!!!

**Author's Note:**

> i feel like i have forgotten a lot about uploading to ao3 but, this is the first work that i have multiple chapters in mind for! it's also my first game grumps/good game fic so please enjoy <3


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